Post-Wedding Bliss

About two and a half months into marriage, we love this wedded bliss. We feel swamped by work at the moment - football season for me, huge deadlines for Terry - but we generally find married life to be delightfully awesome.

In exciting news, our professional photos are here! Not just online; actually in our hands. Our package included a set of 500 prints of our choosing as well as all of the digital copies. I am so anxious to make prints that we can put up on the walls. Also, our photographer, Rhee Bevere, chose a few images from our wedding to submit to a blog that she wrote: http://www.caitlinarnoldweddings.com/. My bridesmaids are absolutely stunning!

Meanwhile, as we wind down (yes, we're still winding down) from the wedding, our weeks and weekends continue to fill up with trips to the Bay Area, scuba diving (for Terry), and any football we can catch. We look forward to a calmer October during which we can plan our next adventures: a trip over Christmas and a spring break trip with friends.

The Wedding

Before we got married, everyone - and I mean everyone - told us that the day would fly by, that we wouldn't remember much, and that we wouldn't have time to eat. We tried desperately to prove them wrong, because we wanted to soak in every moment, remember the little details, and of course enjoy our delicious meal! So how did we do?

Everyone was right about the first part - the day would not slow down once we hit 5:00. We did a good job of trying to soak it in and remember as much as possible. And as for eating - while we weren't able to eat more than one or two appetizers, we made sure that we scarfed down as much as possible during dinner. It was all delicious.

Here's what we do remember about the big day:

Julie

• Laughing a LOT with my bridesmaids right before lining up
• Enjoying a few moments with just my dad before we went down the aisle
• Hearing the music we chose for the ceremony and feeling a calm wash over me
• Catching glimpses of people's faces during the ceremony and feeling so loved and supported
• How stunning our bridal party looked - wow!
• Holding Terry's hand for the first time that day and him giving me a reassuring smile
• Terry reading his letter to me at the altar
• Taking tons of pictures with our photographer and enjoying some semi-alone time
• Watching our bridal party's reactions as the DJ read the introductions we wrote about them
• Terry obsessively watching the guests during our first dance to see if they picked up on the fact that the song says, "Terry and Julie" (no one did)
• Scarfing down our meal and drinking some Jan Lanier-provided Silver Oak along with it
• Dancing with my dad and crying a lot as he told me how excited he was for us to go to Europe
• My mom telling me over and over, "You're married!" She was just so excited all day. :-)
• Seeing so many of our family and friends in one place; everywhere we turned, someone wanted to hug us or congratulate us
• Tons of wind during our second set of portraits outside
• Getting a chance to actually have a conversation with a few people during the money dance
• My favorite moment of the whole day: right before they opened the doors for my entrance with my dad, I was able to peek through and see Terry up at the altar. At that moment, the wedding stopped being about the dress and the pictures and the guests and the music and all the other decisions, and it became all about Terry for me. It hit me that it was all really happening.

I can't pretend to sum up the day in some earth-shattering revelation about what my wedding day meant to me. But it was incredible; we are so grateful to our friends and family for ensuring that we were able to have such an amazing day. And now, to married life!

Pictures!

Our wedding photos are officially online! Our photographer (have I said enough about Rhee Bevere yet?) took absolutely incredible pictures. Looking through all her images, it's surprising she was able to get such "in the moment" shots - I certainly don't remember her being right in front of me while I walked down the aisle. And I don't remember her being in front of us during our vows. It's funny; I guess I was just so focused on Terry that I forgot about the camera! Luckily, Rhee (and her awesome second shooter, Kelvin, plus their assistant Kari/Kerry/Carrie[?]) knew exactly what she was doing. The images are stunning, and we could not be happier with her work!

To check out photos from our wedding, click here: http://www.pictage.com/878623.

The Wedding Day - minus the wedding

In an effort not to sound like I now know everything there is to know about weddings, I can only relate my side of my wedding day. But I do feel that this process of planning, executing, and enjoying our dream wedding has taught me more about family, friendship, patience, and acceptance than I expected. Maybe I even learned a few "rules" about wedding planning that, not surprisingly, work in other areas of life as well.

I forced myself to sleep in until 8 am on the big day. I naturally love going to sleep around 11 pm, and that simply would not do tonight. The night before, after the rehearsal dinner, we were home by 9:30, but I had to wash my hair, pack for the wedding night, finish last minute wedding day details, and (yay procrastination!) write my letter to Terry for the ceremony. I finally got to bed around 11:30. A good amount of sleep, and I hoped adrenaline would do the rest. Here's the first thing I learned from the big day: Get some sleep. This works in life, too. Sleep makes everything clearer, including your eyes. Sleep reduces stress, limits your chances of getting sick, helps you think clearly. I once read an article that said there are no health detriments to sleep. So I slept, and it worked out quite well for me.

Speaking of working out, I couldn't work out that morning, though I would have loved to, because I wouldn't be able to wash my hair again (Ashley's rules). So I did a few push ups - good enough, I guess. (Perhaps rule #2: If you can't work out, do a few push ups?) I headed out to see what everyone was up to. I'm not sure what I was expecting, but I guess my (28-year-old) brother watching SpongeBob and my parents reading the paper wasn't it. I ate some berries and cottage cheese. I showered without washing my hair. I organized the last few items for the wedding. I played with the cat.

I guess I thought the day was supposed to feel...different. But, aside from a conspicuous feeling of glee in my belly, today felt no more special (or less, to its credit) than any other day. And I was bored.

Finally, Mom, Ashley, and I headed to the hair appointment. My dad picked up the girls, we grabbed bagels, and we all met at the salon. Three hours later, our hair gorgeous, we headed back to the house to finish getting ready. This point brought my only stress for the day - I was nervous that we were almost an hour behind my little schedule. But we worked out a plan for Ashley to do Fay's hair at the house, and we were off, all shoved into my dad's Tahoe - I only wish I had a picture of all the girls with beautiful hair squeezed into the truck. Adorable.

But then it turned out being "late" was a good thing. We had approximately 45 minutes to do our makeup, which meant we could do a great job but we couldn't dawdle. Perfect. This part is one of my favorite memories of the day - drinking champagne with the girls, running around borrowing each other's makeup, listening to Heidi's awesome music mix. When our photographer, Rhee, arrived (five minutes early - amazing), I felt relaxed and excited. We finished up our makeup, the girls got dressed, and we all teamed up to get me in my dress. Hilariously, the girls all took turns buttoning me up.

Leaving the house turned out to be far more emotional than I expected. I stood in my parents' entry way, where I used to spend hours dancing in my socks, and I had to take a moment to acknowledge that I was in the same spot but in my wedding gown. Crazy. Then we limo'd over to the ceremony, disappointed along the way that my dad hadn't arranged a police escort. Next rule for weddings/life: If you want a police escort, arrange ahead of time.

In total, the day was quite calm. Is 'calm' the right word? Perhaps I meant 'dull' - if it weren't for my parents and bridesmaids, it would have been up there with studying chemistry. Thankfully, the girls made it fun and my dad kept trying to make me cry, so we were good. Finally, it was 4:45, the guests had almost all arrived, and we were lining up outside the doors.

At this point I shall take the opportunity to gush about my amazing bridesmaids. While the day could have been stressful, frenzied, tense, or anxiety-ridden, my girls kept me laughing, helped solve any problems that threatened to arise, and made sure I wanted for nothing. So here's one of the biggest pieces of advice: Choose excellent bridal party members. Choose people who will make you feel good, who will laugh with you, who want the best for you. In life, same thing: choose great friends. It makes everything more fun.

And we're back!

Almost one full month after the wedding, after the honeymoon, after Terry has returned to work, after attending cheer camp with my cheerleaders, and after a quick trip to San Diego for a pre-birthday celebration (which I shall choose to call "a celebration of still being 25"), we are back. The cat might be the only one who is truly thrilled about this.

My goal here is not to overwhelm my masses of readers (hi, Mom!) with one post but to provide a few well-organized posts about the wedding and its aftermath. Otherwise I'm not sure what I would do with all my spare time.

I know visuals generally prove far more insightful than lengthy descriptions, so thankfully our incredible photographer has provided us with a snippet of her and Kelvin's gorgeous work. Enjoy, then come back for those lengthy descriptions I mentioned earlier.

http://video214.com/play/V1jI1DaktIMz0CwP0F3FLA/s/dark

In the interest of chronology, we'll go to the pre-wedding and rehearsal stuff first. While I did post before the wedding, I was a midst a flurry of chaos, emotions, and buying makeup, only the last of which had anything to do with me. My mother, surprisingly calm and helpful (I say "surprisingly" not because she is usually not helpful but because I was not sure what to expect from her that week, so anything would have been a surprise), kept busy with making our favors, getting the house ready for the post-wedding lunch, and assembling our programs. My father, on the other hand, kept everyone on edge by either leaving the house for random errands that clearly could not wait until after the wedding - such as picking up his golf clubs three cities away - or forcing us to listen to depressing songs. But even with all we had left to do and Terry not arriving in Fremont until Wednesday, we got it all done by Friday's rehearsal.

The parents all hosted a quick picnic at Mitchell Katz winery, the winery at our wedding site. I loved seeing all our friends there to kick off the awesome weekend. The ceremony rehearsal went off with few falters, and we girls headed off to get our nails done. Terry's parents hosted our rehearsal dinner at Campo di Bocce, a bocce ball restaurant in downtown Livermore. The location was the perfect spot - dinner and toasts first, then a few games of bocce. The whole group had a great time - our parents, the bridal party and ceremony participants, and a few of Terry's extended family. We definitely recommend Campo di Bocce for a rehearsal dinner! Then my family headed home for rest, and Terry stayed at the hotel where all the guests were staying. A fantastic night to precede a fantastic wedding day.

Mr. and Mrs. Terry Heinrich!

We're married! Of course we will blog all the details later, but I felt the need to post a little something before heading off to our honeymoon. The weekend and the big day absolutely surpassed every expectation we held. Our parents, bridal party, family, and friends showed us incredible love, and we are still glowing from the big day.

Today, in about an hour, we jet off to Europe for our honeymoon. We feel so blessed that we get to enjoy two weeks exploring such storied destinations. We promise to share pictures and all the adventures when we return!

Meanwhile, thanks for reading, and here's to an incredible adventure in Europe and in marriage.

And here we go...

Here we are, the night before our wedding. I feel a surprising sense of peace and calmness, especially now that the rehearsal and rehearsal dinner wrapped up a few hours ago. Terry's parents hosted a wonderful, fun dinner (albeit emotional), and we loved everyone's toasts. We held the rehearsal at Campo di Bocce, a bocce ball place that doubles as an Italian restaurant. It was perfect for our little party, and everyone loved the bocce ball games!

The last few days were at times stressful, emotional, frustrating, funny, exciting, and difficult. Mostly, I've loved spending so much time with my family and putting all the finishing touches on our projects. Terry and I are so excited to see everything put together tomorrow.

As for the real part - the marriage part - we just can't wait. It's finally here, finally time to relax and enjoy our nuptials. While we've planned every detail from the dress to the meal to the music, the important part will happen right at 5:00, when our pastor invites our family, friends, and God to witness and bless our marriage. I feel so lucky to have such supportive family, such loving friends, such generous in-laws, and such an incredible man in my life. So until after the wedding, thank you for reading, for supporting us, and for hanging in there throughout The Olive Theory!

Here's to an incredible journey together!

All the loose ends

No matter how much time you have to plan, it's crazy when you get down to the final days and realize you're actually getting married. All the planning, all the e-mails, the meetings with vendors, the money, the trips to the venue...it seems impossible that the end result has arrived. Granted, we still have a few days, but I can't help thinking about the fact that it'll all be over soon. It's bittersweet, but mostly sweet. (Plus, with chocolate, bittersweet is WAY better than sweet! In life, you should compare all things to chocolate.)

The last few days have felt like a blur. Terry headed back to LA, I went to the delta with my parents and some friends, Terry worked, I worked on wedding projects like crazy. My future sister-in-law, Ashley, did a trial run on my hair today (I'm so excited! She did an amazing job!), and I've purchased a bunch of new makeup for the day (I'll do my own makeup) with the help of two amazing bridesmaids, Heidi and Jenn. My parents have been a huge help with all the projects; tonight we had a program-assembly party, and tomorrow we'll organize and assemble the welcome bags for out-of-towners. Tomorrow also includes several errands, a few appointments, and picking up Terry at the airport (yay!). It will be wonderful to have him here to help with all the details.

Everyone I run into asks how I'm feeling, and honestly, I'm a little overwhelmed. While we have all the big stuff in order, the little details are what will make the wedding ours, and I hope we'll be able to pull it all together the way we're envisioning. I think the toughest parts this week have been:

• the seating chart
• trying not to forget anything for the wedding or honeymoon
• answering the seemingly endless questions that just keep coming
• figuring out everyone's schedule and all the logistics for the whole weekend
• not having Terry around (that silly work thing gets in the way!)

Thankfully, I have the world's most supportive parents, and Terry will be here tomorrow. My bridesmaids have been incredible about asking how they can help and being super generous with their time. And again, we're just really trying to focus on the big picture - that whole marriage thing! Only three days...

It's July!

Rabbit, rabbit! We say that phrase for good luck at the beginning of each month. My family has always done it, and last year I explained the ritual to my students, and they got all excited to do it too. Unfortunately, one of my students had a horrible month when he tried it out, so I'm not sure how fool-proof it is. Regardless, my whole family made sure to say it this morning. Try it at your own risk!

Terry, Scout, and I drove up last night with quite the car full of wedding paraphernalia. Terry heads back down to LA tomorrow for another few days of work, and I'll stay up here to finish the last projects before the big day. Today, we met with our DJ to finalize the reception schedule, our florist to confirm the flower details, and my seamstress for my final dress fitting. Obviously Terry didn't join for the last part, but my mom did, which was so fun. Now the dress is at the bridal shop, J'aime Bridal, where I purchased it, for some steam action.

Tonight I made (started, rather) the final to-do list for the next week. It's a full page so far - finish the programs, assemble the place cards, confirm the honeymoon reservations - wish us luck! Rabbit, rabbit!

15 days!

By the time you realize (and come to terms with the fact) that you're only fifteen days away from your wedding, everyone else seems to realize it, too. In the last two days alone I have received close to a dozen e-mails from our vendors, confirming details, setting up final meetings, gathering information. I LOVE that our vendors are so organized, efficient, and prompt with answering our questions! I've said it before, but seriously - work with experienced vendors! It has made wedding planning a complete breeze knowing that we will be in such good hands at the wedding.

Terry and I have tried to balance wedding with non-wedding to keep ourselves from getting: a) overwhelmed, b) stressed, c) exhausted, or d) too excited! Last week I had a Diet Coke and then couldn't sleep, so soda is out until the big day. Apparently I'm just too hyped up! So this week, we enjoyed a great dinner with Terry's family, visited the Tim Burton exhibit at LACMA, and even squeezed in a few new recipes. We're also getting into great running shape, which helps me relax, feel good, and energize as we get close to the big day. (Of course, I'm also hoping it'll help me look all pretty in my dress!)

I've mentioned before that we're down to the last few projects, but I realized I never posted about the day we got our marriage license. And it was such a fun day! However long ago, on a quick visit to Santa Barbara, Terry and I wandered through the Santa Barbara Courthouse, which is simply stunning. They host weddings all the time, and the gates around the property remind me of The Sound of Music when Maria goes through the gates to get married. So while we knew a Santa Barbara wedding would not fly, I asked my wonderful fiance if we could at least do the marriage license thing there. True to his word, Terry made sure we found a day to do it.

Getting a marriage license in California is ridiculously easy. You go online to whatever county's website, find the Clerk-Recorder's page, and fill out the online application. They ask for very little information, and they don't even require blood tests in our state. Then you show up (in our case, no appointment was necessary), hand over your ID, and pledge an oath. Did you know you have to pledge an oath? We felt a little silly, but you literally raise your right hand and read off a note card. And then you sign a few papers, pay a fee (around $85-$95, depending on the county), and get your license! One of the most frequently asked questions, according to our clerk, is, "So...are we married now?" Maybe a silly question, but obviously a common one. The officiant still has to marry you, and then he or she signs the license after the ceremony and sends it in to the courthouse. After they process the license, you can get a certified copy (again, for a fee).

After we got the license, we found a stranger to take this single picture.

One cool aspect of applying for a license is that you can change your name through the license if you so choose. I will be taking Terry's name, and I'll also change my middle name to my last name. That was a big decision for me. I really love my name, Julie Michelle, and I love that I have the same initials as my mom. But since I'll be changing my last name anyway, I like the idea of keeping Lanier connected to me. My family has a lot of history in which I've grown increasingly interested throughout the last several years, so keeping my name while still taking Terry's felt like the perfect solution. So after we get back from the honeymoon, I'll begin the process of shifting from Julie Michelle Lanier to Julie Lanier Heinrich. Yay!

Old, new, borrowed, blue

You know the old tradition, but I looked up the origin just for fun. The best explanation I found was from Yahoo! Answers:

The next line of this old saying actually hints at its origin. The complete phrase is:

Something old, something new
Something borrowed, something blue
And a silver sixpence in her shoe.

A sixpence is a coin that was minted in Britain from 1551 to 1967. It was made of silver and worth six pennies. So this wedding tradition is definitely English, and many sources say that it began in the Victorian era.

Each item in this poem represents a good-luck token for the bride. If she carries all of them on her wedding day, her marriage will be happy. "Something old" symbolizes continuity with the bride's family and the past. "Something new" means optimism and hope for the bride's new life ahead. "Something borrowed" is usually an item from a happily married friend or family member, whose good fortune in marriage is supposed to carry over to the new bride. The borrowed item also reminds the bride that she can depend on her friends and family.

As for the colorful item, blue has been connected to weddings for centuries. In ancient Rome, brides wore blue to symbolize love, modesty, and fidelity. Christianity has long dressed the Virgin Mary in blue, so purity was associated with the color. Before the late 19th century, blue was a popular color for wedding gowns, as evidenced in proverbs like, "Marry in blue, lover be true."

And finally, a silver sixpence in the bride's shoe represents wealth and financial security. It may date back to a Scottish custom of a groom putting a silver coin under his foot for good luck. For optimum fortune, the sixpence should be in the left shoe. These days, a dime or a copper penny is sometimes substituted.

How fun! Here are my items for the wedding:

Something old: As you might remember from a previous post, my aunt Dawn Lynn gave Terry the diamond for my ring. The diamond is from my great-grandmother, so we think that's old enough. :-) Plus, the "something old" is supposed to connect the bride and groom to the bride's family and past, which this diamond does perfectly!

Something new: Pretty much everything I'm wearing - dress, shoes, veil, earrings.

Something borrowed: I'm supposed to borrow something from a happily married woman, so I will be wearing my mom's tennis bracelet.

Something blue: I love the origin of the "something blue" part. The fact that the color blue has been an important part of weddings since ancient times gets me all giddy. So my blue, like most brides, is in my garter. I'm attempting to make my own, and we'll see how that goes, but no matter what I'll have blue in my garter.

I hadn't heard of the "silver sixpence in the bride's shoe" part of the rhyme, but I like it! I'll have to see if we can find a sixpence in the next three weeks!

Ceremony Readings

We have two readers for our ceremony. Our pastor helped us find some unique passages that we both really love. I'm really looking forward to hearing Pastor Frank's reflection on these passages during the ceremony.

Colossians 3:12-17

¹² Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. ¹³ Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. ¹⁴ And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.

¹⁵ Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. ¹⁶ Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts. ¹⁷ And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

Philippians 2:1-5

¹ Therefore if you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any common sharing in the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, ² then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and of one mind. ³ Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, ⁴not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others. ⁵ In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus.

Our readers are two of our closest family friends, Alan Byard and Diane Johnson. Terry has known Alan as long as he can remember; Alan was one of Terry's mom's students when she taught high school history. Alan then became like a big brother to Terry and Kevin, babysitting them, playing video games, even coaching them in swimming. Despite his allegiance to U$C, we've stayed close to Alan and always enjoy a good tailgate or sporting event.

I have known Diane since I was five years old and playing Little League with her younger son, Matt. Our families have grown incredibly close, and Diane is my "second mom." She is my mom's best friend and has always been so supportive of Terry's and my relationship. I feel so honored that she will be speaking in our ceremony - it wouldn't be complete without the "Awesomes" making an appearance!

DIY Invitations

My favorite part of our wedding projects so far, the invitations, started as a generic idea and evolved into a fun product of our teamwork. We knew from the beginning we would go through Paper Source, because their colors actually helped us determine our wedding colors. We made a total of 115 invitations, all 100% in our own home. So, here goes:

Materials to make one invitation

For the invitation card

• A7 Flat card (moss) - this was our backing
• Half-Moon/Pocket Enclosure flat card (luxe cream) - this was the actual card we printed on

For the information card

• 8 1/2" x 11" text paper (beet) - this was our backing
• A6 Flat card (luxe cream)

For the reply card & reply envelope

• A7 Flat card (luxe cream) - cut in half
• 4 Bar envelope (moss)

For the outer envelope and lining

• A7 envelope (moss)
• 8 1/2" x 11" text paper (beet)
• Envelope liner templates from Paper Source

Other Materials

• printer and ink
• paper cutter (thanks, Heidi and Ed!)
• ink pad from Paper Source (boysenberry)
• grape rubber stamp from Paper Source
• double-sided tape (I preferred Scotch Scrapbooking Tape, but suddenly none of the Targets I went to carried it anymore, so the other stuff worked fine)
• scissors
• a ruler
• Adobe Illustrator or other design software

Process

Terry designed all of the materials on his own using Adobe Illustrator. We used traditional invitation wording and kept the invite card simple. Most pieces of our stationary had our "signature" bunch of grapes, sometimes with a vine attached. Again, Terry designed all that. To keep the colors consistent, we printed out several color samples and compared them to the green and/or purple paper. The printing was a chore at first, but Terry finally got the paper running through the printer smoothly.

All the pieces of our invitations.

For the reply cards, we chose to keep everything super simple with a clean border and the basics. Since we're doing family style, we didn't even need to include meal requests. The reply envelope was stamped with a custom rubber stamp (to save my hand) with my parents' address and a "love" stamp. We also included our grape stamp on the back flap of the envelope.

Reply card envelopes - address stamp and grape stamp.

For assembly, I first had to cut each of our printed pieces down to size. The half-moon/pocket enclosure flat cards needed 1/4" cut off in order to fit evenly on the backing (the A7 cards). For the info cards, I had to cut the A6 cards down to almost a square, and I had to trim the 8 1/2" x 11" text paper down to 1/4" larger than the newly-sized info cards. I only needed to cut the reply cards in half.

The trimming process.

Once trimming was finished, I got a little crazy with measuring each piece of double-sided tape so that it fit almost exactly along the edges of the flat cards that we were mounting. I used a ruler and scissors to cut the tape, but a less crazy person may have just estimated. Once I got the hang of it, though, I think the ruler helped save me time, because then I never had to go back to fix any mistakes. Actually placing the cards on their respective backings proved tricky; it was nearly impossible to ensure that each one would be exactly centered, but I did my best! One friend mentioned that hers was crooked, but then she knew we made them ourselves - so I guess that's something!

The finished invite!

The envelope lining was time-consuming but totally worth it. I can't tell you how many compliments we've gotten on the lining of the envelope - of all things! Paper Source made it super easy - I just used their envelope liner template kit to trace each liner, then cut the paper, stuck it in the envelope, and taped it down using my new favorite tool - double-sided tape. Again, I probably made the process lengthier than necessary by first using a ruler to crease the paper and then taping it down to attach the envelope. We also stamped a grape stamp to the back flap of the envelope to tie in more of our grape theme. The outer envelope also includes our return address labels - custom ordered from Vista Print - and our wedding cake stamps from the good ol' USPS.

The outer envelope and lining.

The envelopes - all ready to go!

Assembly was easy after all that - invitation card in the back, then the info card, then the reply card (tucked in the reply envelope). We made sure to number each reply card - we've heard stories of people forgetting to write their names on the response cards. Then I addressed each envelope by hand - another time-consuming but worth-it process. Finally, we sealed everything up and sent 'em off! The whole process was a blast, in spite of the 50+ hours it took to get it all done.

The complete contents - success!

Bridal Shower and Bachelorette!

Last weekend, my incredible bridesmaids threw me the most phenomenal bridal shower and bachelorette party! The most touching part of the day was that everyone chipped in to help - I felt so honored that all the girls worked together to create such an amazing weekend.

After watching my amazing fiance graduate from his Master's program, Jenn drove me out to the shower. Heidi hosted at her condo in Simi Valley, and ALL of my bridesmaids plus a few very close friends joined for a wonderful afternoon. The girls put out a delicious spread, and Heidi got the most delightful cake from Nothing Bundt Cakes (get it?!?!) - chocolate chocolate chip with cream cheese frosting...delightful, indeed! We ate and caught up a bit before Winnie hosted a few games. I've been lucky not to suffer through any cheesy games, and this shower was no exception. Winnie had contacted Terry ahead of time to ask him some trivia questions, which I then also had to answer. Overall, I answered most questions correctly, but I was pleasantly surprised by some of the sweet answers responses Terry provided. Winnie also set up a game where the girls had to write one thing they hope Terry and I will do, see, or accomplish in our first year of marriage - and one "bedroom" (?) thing they hope we will do in the same amount of time. The answers were hilarious - I loved the game! For this shower, my girls focused on ensuring that Terry really enjoys the honeymoon. They did a great job, and I know he will be quite appreciative! One of my favorite moments of the day? Fay's gift - not a nightie but a turkey roaster. Super sexy indeed!

After the shower, we all headed over to Universal City to check into our hotel and dress up for the evening festivities. Special thanks to Arcadia for providing the soundtrack that got us all pumped up - good ol' Britney does it every time! We waltzed over to City Walk in our unrealistically high heels for a Buca di Beppo dinner, where a few more girls joined us. Then it was off to the main event - Howl at the Moon! I LOVE piano bars, and the girls indulged me with a whole night of singing along, dancing, and laughing way too much. We eventually all got pulled on stage because we were obviously having a blast.

After all the insanity, we hobbled back to the hotel and soaked our poor feet. It was an awesome girls' night out, and I can't thank my bridesmaids enough for organizing everything. From the shower to the night out, I had a perfect bachelorette weekend! Pictures to come...maybe. :-)

Bridal Shower and Dress Fitting

This weekend I flew up north for the final time before the wedding. Terry stayed home to work on his final paper, so I spent some quality time with my parents on Friday night. Saturday we woke up early for a workout, and then Mom and I finally found my earrings for the wedding at Nordstrom! The jewelry line is Nadri - I love them!

Next we headed to Monika's Alterations in Pleasanton, where, I'm convinced, the world's greatest seamstress makes magic happen. I got to try on my newly-altered dress, and it fits great! Monika only had a few changes to make, but they made a huge difference. Plus, she added a bustle, which looks really great with the dress. I even got to try the dress with my shoes, and I can walk and everything! My mom also brought in her dress for alterations, and I am so excited - she looks simply gorgeous in her dress. Now both mothers have their dresses, and the dads have their tuxedos - everyone is going to look incredible!

One fun part of the "small town" feel of Pleasanton/Livermore valley is that we often get a chance to meet other couples getting married at the Palm Event Center. Yesterday, at the fitting, I got to meet the bride getting married the night before us at the Palm! She looked stunning in her dress, and it was so fun to meet and share the excitement of our upcoming weddings.

After the fitting, we headed up to Lafayette for a bridal shower at my Aunt Dawn Lynn's house. Dawn Lynn did such a beautiful job, and the day was just so special. She had awesome snacks, GREAT wine, and a fun game. It was so great to spend a day with all the ladies, including my mom, my "second mom" Diane, my aunt Sue, Terry's mom, Terry's close family friend, my brother's fiancee, my cousins, my maid of honor, and one of my mom's friends. I know everyone had a great time, thanks to my aunt! Check out some pictures from the day:

Amazing little touches everywhere!

We made the "countdown plate"!

My mom and future sister-in-law (my brother's fiancee, Ashley).

My aunt Sue, me, my aunt (and the hostess) Dawn Lynn, and maid of honor Winnie.

My beautiful cousins.

Dad loading the gifts and rehearsal "bow-quet" into the car.

An amazing weekend, and now, as my uncle informed me, we're only five weeks from the wedding! Here we go...

All roads converge

Sometimes I like to think about all the things that had to happen in order for Terry and me to meet, fall in love, and end up where we are now. It may seem easy, but it's amazing how it all came together. Somehow, we both had to end up at UCLA. While a decent student in high school, I wasn't exactly the 4.6 GPA you see applying to today's colleges. Terry was a phenomenal student in high school, earned a full ride elsewhere, and somehow felt that UCLA was the best choice.

Somehow we both had to apply to the Orientation Program in the summer of 2006. I had already been a counselor the year before, which never would have happened if an ex-boyfriend hadn't wanted the position. I went with him to the information meeting, applied, and loved the job, so I applied again the following year. Terry, on the other hand, never would have applied if he had stayed on the UCLA Football team, which he walked onto his freshman year. I am so grateful he opted for Orientation instead!

Of course, there are a million other little things that had to happen to get us here. Every now and then I like to think about that and give thanks for those million things. I know we work hard at our relationship and that we have a lot of say in our future, but I have no doubt that there is another force at work here. We were made for each other!

Just a few updates

Apparently we're in crunch time, as everyone keeps reminding me, so I feel like I should update the ol' blog to provide you with some insight into the alleged insanity. I'm sad to say that this will be a rather anticlimactic post if you're expecting a frenzied bride and annoyed groom, because we haven't had more than a few minutes (literally!) to do wedding stuff lately! We are so excited for Memorial Day, because we are 100% free to run errands and get organized for the last few weeks before the big day.

Not to say it hasn't all been fun. In the last few weeks we've celebrated Terry's 25th birthday, worked (a lot), visited with friends (a little), driven into the Bay Area, bought a car, laughed at our adorable kitten, enjoyed a few great meals, and completed half of our scuba diving certification. We're just ready for a little down time.

As far as wedding stuff goes, the last few weeks have included creating a partial honeymoon itinerary, finalizing our ceremony details, updating RSVPs, and creating the day-of schedule for the bride, groom, parents, and bridal party. Of those, the honeymoon takes the cake as the most fun and easiest to plan! Our tentative London schedule includes:

• Westminster Abbey
• Clarence House
• Hyde Park
• Kensington Palace
• Green Park
• Buckingham Palace
• Waterloo Station/Bridge
• Victoria and Albert Museum
• "Les Miserables" at the Queen's Theatre
• British Museum
• King's Cross
• River Cruise
• London Eye
• St. Paul's Cathedral
• Tate Modern
• Millennium Bridge
• "Much Ado About Nothing" at the Globe Theatre
• National Gallery
• National Portrait Gallery
• Trafalgar Square
• Waterstone's Bookstore
• Tower of London
• Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (YES - IN LONDON!!!)
• Big Ben & Houses of Parliament

PHEW! I guess if you're going to do London, you have to do London. We're adventurers, and we're not really into relaxing on vacation, apparently, so there you go. Any other suggestions, please e-mail us!!!

In other SUPER exciting wedding news, my amazing aunt is throwing me a bridal shower up north with my relatives from the area. I am so excited and honored. I remember my aunt's wedding and her gorgeous dress and flowers, and I can't believe that now she's throwing my bridal shower! I have always looked up to my aunt because she throws incredible Thanksgiving dinners and is such a gracious hostess. This is also the aunt who generously provided my great-grandmother's diamond with which Terry proposed. Since we are so close with her, my uncle, and their daughters, we have asked Barbara and Chase, my cousins, to serve in our ceremony. These gorgeous young ladies will present the bride - they are responsible for opening and closing the doors during the processional and eventually opening the doors when my dad and I are starting our walk down the aisle. I hope they're excited!

So that's it for now. My school year ends June 10th, and Terry graduates June 11th, so we can get much more focused on the wedding at that point. I promise far more interesting and exciting blog posts!

Meanwhile, 52 days to go!

Two months and one day...

This weekend, Terry, Scout, and I ventured up north for a few important appointments (not to mention wishing my mom a very happy Mother's Day).

First, we had our finalization meeting with our venue, the Palm Event Center. Our coordinator, Monique, knows absolutely everything about weddings at this gorgeous location, and we know she will take care of all the little details leading up to and on the big day. Before the meeting, we had to complete a ridiculously detailed questionnaire - and I'm so grateful we did! The questions illustrate that the venue takes our event seriously and that they truly know what they are doing. My mom was amazed at all the details we need to think about, and Monique put our minds at ease. She was able to provide some insight regarding a few of our decisions, and we'll be much more able to finish the rest of our planning with her guidance.

We also had an appointment to meet the woman who will make all the alterations on my gown. First we stopped at J'aime Bridal, the salon where I purchased my dress, to pick it up. My dad and Terry convinced me that it wouldn't be far to walk to the alterations place, and you should have seen it: I had my giant dress bag in my arms, and I ended up having to walk at least three blocks with a 25-pound (perhaps only a slight exaggeration) dress. Regardless, I made it to the alterations place, Monika's Alterations, with my mom, and the dress still makes my heart race. The seamstress will need to take it in a bit (yay!), and of course she's adding a bustle. My mom was even happy with the price, so everyone wins!

And then, to top off a rather productive day, Terry and I bought a car! We have been planning to purchase a car for awhile, and a family friend happened to have one ready for us this weekend. Obviously, it's the largest purchase we've made together, and it was both scary and exhilarating to sign all those papers and make that down payment. We ended up with an awesome 2011 KIA Sorento. On the way back to my parents' house, we discussed how exciting it is that this car will eventually take us on road trips and carry car seats and move us into the first house we buy. Amidst all the wedding planning, it's even more exciting to plan for our marriage.

Last wedding planning weekend up north

Tomorrow, Terry and I head up north for two major wedding planning moments: my first dress alterations appointment and our finalization meeting with our venue.

We're excited and anxious about the meeting with the Palm Event Center, which is where both our ceremony and reception will take place. We had to complete an extensive questionnaire regarding every detail of our wedding, from guest count to where the escort cards will go to what we want to do with the centerpieces after the wedding to what time our photographer will leave. I'm so grateful to be working with such an experienced venue. I have approximately 850 questions, and they seem prepared to answer all of them. I'm excited for all of the details to start coming together!

65 days...

Wasn't it perfect???

I'm currently watching the wedding for a second time, this viewing with all the commentary beforehand and (finally) getting to watch the balcony kiss. I know it's been beaten to death, but, seeing as this is a wedding blog, I absolutely must provide a few comments, if only as a mini-time capsule upon which I can later look back.

It was truly perfect. From the Abbey to the gown to the vows, I thought the wedding was breathtaking. Catherine is such a gorgeous bride, and of course William is a total hunk, especially in that uniform. Here are my favorite parts:

William and Kate broke with some traditions. Weddings are traditional affairs, and Terry and I are huge fans of that tradition. I love the ancient vows, giving away the bride, and not seeing each other before the ceremony. But of course, some traditions simply don't fit with the couples. William is not wearing a wedding band, and they chose to arrive via car instead of carriage. The Queen was apparently not thrilled with the latter choice but ultimately lent Kate her 1950 Rolls Royce. I felt a bit relieved to know that even the royals break tradition, because Terry and I are breaking a few as well, much to the chagrin of our mothers. For example, I will not walk down the aisle to "Here Comes the Bride." (Then again, neither did Kate! We could pretend it's a British wedding!)

My favorite part of the wedding today was the Bishop of London's sermon, which included, "Marriage is intended to be a way in which man and woman help each other to become what God meant each one to be." What a beautiful way to summarize the true ideal of marriage - that two people can be joined by God to then grow and become greater than they ever could be independently. I do feel that Terry makes me the best version of myself, and I hope I can help him continue to grow as an amazing man.

I wish the best for William and Kate's future - may the fairy tale end in "happily ever after!"

Royal Wedding Countdown - Six Hours!!!

No, I'm not staying up until 3 am to watch, but I am waking up at five so I can quickly fast forward through and watch the ceremony before work. I imagine this feeling is close to how excited I'll be on my actual wedding day. (I am only exaggerating slightly.) How will I sleep?!

There has been some talk about how crazy people are for being so excited, but I find the whole thing fascinating, romantic, and historical. And of course, there's the cliche - it's a real life fairy tale. But it's more than a fairy tale; it seems as though William and Kate have created a solid foundation for their relationship, and I look forward to watching their wedding. (Okay, let's face it, I'm slightly more excited than that.) That said, I'm off to bed to rest up for the big day!

Cheers to the bride and groom!

A crazy few weeks

The whole crew!

Sharron and I working on the cake.

So glad my mom could come down for the shower!

We thought the week we moved was crazy, but the universe proved us wrong again. Last week illustrated what true chaos means, and we both feel relieved to be on the other side of that insanity. Terry had to write a ten-page introduction (yes, that's just the introduction) to his Master's project, and I had cheer tryouts all week. Somehow, we survived the madness, and Terry even survived his Ragnar Relay race down to Coronado Island with his coworkers. I'm so proud that he finished, and - even more impressive - ran over 13 miles without much sleep. What a champ. Meanwhile, a few wedding updates from the last few weeks:

My mom came down for a fun weekend of girly bonding, shopping, and bridal shower-ing. We even found her dress for the wedding! We went through David's Bridal, which had a dress that looks stunning and elegant on her. I can't wait to see it for the big day! That same weekend, Terry's mom, family friends, and a few others threw a gorgeous bridal shower for me. The outdoor setting felt elegant and super classy, and Terry's dad even tended the bar! I'm so glad my mom was able to be there to celebrate with Terry's side of the family, a few of my coworkers, and even an awesome bridesmaid (thanks for making the drive out, Heidi!). It felt very surreal opening wedding gifts at my own bridal shower - I can't exactly describe the feeling of receiving your first gift that is intended for you and your husband. I have given many a wedding gift before, but receiving one is a completely different experience. I am so grateful to Terry's family and friends for throwing such a beautiful shower. I am truly blessed to get to be a part of such a generous and loving family.

This week (and for the past two months), we have been hard at work on the invitations, and tonight we finally sent them! We estimate that the entire process, from design to construction to licking the envelopes, took around 50 hours total. Some highlights include: trying to mount the cards onto the backings while driving up to Fremont (surprisingly difficult in a car), making at least eight trips to Paper Source to gather the necessary materials, and wanting to write angry letters to Target because they were surprisingly inconsistent with which stores carry scrapbooking tape and which ones don't. Regardless, we got it all done, and we absolutely put every bit of heart and soul into those invites. Pictures to come - hope you'll like them!

William and Kate's wedding is in a week and a half! I'm so excited for the Barbara Walters special about the wedding tonight, and I have every intention of creating a British-style meal on the big day. I also look forward to trying Newcastle's new brew, Kiss Me Kate, named after the new princess herself! Good thing we're doing London for the honeymoon - otherwise it would have been added to the itinerary!

In other wedding news, my big brother and his awesome fiancee have set a date for their nuptials! I seriously doubt they have any intention of blogging about their wedding planning, so I plan to take full responsibility for that project. I'm so proud and happy that Chris found the girl of his dreams (and hey, we all love her!). We are so excited to celebrate their wedding, and I look forward to the ginger children they will likely produce.

Life's certainly getting busy! On top of the wedding, work, school, family visits, and (still) setting up the new apartment, Terry's 25th birthday is this Thursday, and we're taking some time to celebrate that night. Later in May, the real gift is SCUBA diving! We've never done it before, but we're getting certified and then diving in Catalina for a weekend. We can't wait!

New home and fewer than 100 days to go!

Well, we have officially moved in to our new apartment! My parents came down Wednesday to help us clean and pack up our old apartment (man, what a huge help!), and then on Thursday the four of us and a team of movers got us settled into our new place. Pictures to be posted after we make things look a bit more presentable, but here's the rundown: It's newly renovated, in one of our favorite neighborhoods, and has an open floor plan. We now have two pools in our complex, plus a workout room, which are both big steps up from the old place. And our rent is significantly lower! Unfortunately, it's noticeably smaller than our last apartment and in an area with higher traffic. But we're getting settled and already loving the positive aspects of our new home. It will be the first place we'll live as a married couple, so we know it'll be awesome.

As we settle in, we're trying to stay on top of all the wedding planning - a slightly more difficult task when we can't remember which box has the wine corks and which box has the invitations. So tonight we focused on tasks we can complete online, like updating our registry and figuring out our welcome gifts for out of town guests. Terry pointed out that we are 97 days away from the wedding - wow! It's starting to get close, but we think our planning efforts have kept us fairly organized and ready to tick off the last three months without much stress. I'm personally super excited for my first bridal shower next weekend and shopping with my mom to find her dress for the big day.

By the way, is anyone following William and Kate's wedding plans? I'm admittedly in love with this couple. What's not to love? Royalty, British accents, a future princess - it's the fairy tale of our time. I just bought the "Will & Kate: The Royal Wedding" special edition of US Weekly, and I devoured every detail. I can't wait to see the real thing, though I have been told it might not be an awesome idea to watch a wedding at 1:00 am on a work day. Still, I fully intend to read every news story I can, and I also hope to follow through on Terry's cousin's idea for us to go as William and Kate for Halloween! Bloody brilliant!

March ends with a bang

Whoops! It's been quite awhile since my last post. As usual, we've been busy filling our weekends (and, lately, weeknights) with more activities than we can realistically complete, but we love it. We got back yesterday from an awesome engagement party for my big brother and his gorgeous fiancee, Ashley. We must have met half a dozen couples who are either engaged or newly married, so we had a blast exchanging wedding tips and getting marriage advice. It's always great to see my family, but the trips always feel SO short. We only have two more trips to the Bay Area planned before the wedding, so we really need to take advantage of the time we have when we do get up there. Our next trip includes my first dress alterations appointment, meeting with the Palm Event Center to hammer out details for the big day, and hopefully buying our first new car together! Such a grown up thing to do - yikes.

Lately our focus has been split between wedding details and packing for our big move (well, that and entertaining/being entertained by our adorable kitten). I'm about halfway done with my part of the invitations, and hopefully we can get them out in the next few weeks. We finally found an incredible apartment that will be our home during our first years of marriage. I love moving - the process of cleaning out all our stuff, organizing our lives, and starting fresh in a newly remodeled apartment just makes me giddy. I love redecorating and figuring out the puzzle of how to fit everything in the allotted space. Plus, our new place has two pools, a workout room, and a much better location. We look forward to the big move!

The next few weeks may feel a little crazy for us. It's my spring break, so I'm finishing up the packing before my parents come down to help with the move. Then in two weeks I have my first bridal shower with Terry's side of the family! Terry's birthday is coming up in April, and we're each entering busy times for work and school. Thankfully, the craziness is all such great stuff, and we're generally motivated by the fact that our wedding is getting SO close!

Thanks for reading - we're nearing the big day!

Food, Finals, and DIY Fun

Food first (those two words may or may not be a way of life in the Lanier/Heinrich household). I mentioned in a previous post that Terry and I are partaking in a 10-day challenge to eat all real food and no processed food. We started Wednesday, and we love it! So far, we have eaten these new recipes:

• Whole wheat crepes
• Whole wheat French toast with real maple syrup (our favorite so far)
  
• Whole wheat macaroni and cheese
• Spaghetti sauce with whole wheat noodles
• Peanut butter and jelly smoothies
• Caprese salad sandwiches
• And tonight's dinner: whole chicken in a crock pot

Macaroni and Cheese

Crepes

Vegetable Stir-Fry

All recipes are from the 100 Days of Real Food blog - check out the idea behind it and all the other yummy recipes! It's surprisingly easy to eat only real food, and in only a few days we've eaten more fruits, vegetables, and whole grains than we would in two weeks. For bread, the blog recommends buying bread from the Great Harvest Bread Company. I found one in South Pasadena, not too far from my work, so we have been completely spoiled with delicious (and healthy!) bread all week. I highly recommend the honey wheat!

In addition to our food challenge, Terry has had to study for two finals this week, and today he's finishing up the second one. What a stud - almost done with his Master's! He'll graduate in June, and we are both very excited for him to be done. Working full time and doing a graduate program is ridiculously difficult - but he's ridiculously awesome, so it all works out. :-)

This week, between the new recipes and receiving my pink slip (you like how I just slip that in there?), I found some time to relax with some fun projects. We're starting the invitation printing and assembly process tomorrow, so I focused on our guest book for the wedding. We played around with a lot of different ideas that we've seen at various weddings - a framed picture with a large matte that guests can sign, a regular guest book, a giant wine bottle with silver Sharpies, postcards, but ultimately we decided that we want to use our gorgeous engagement pictures from our wedding photographer, Rhee, and our good friend Roxanne. Between the pictures at Point Dume and UCLA and in downtown San Jose, we have over 200 pictures we can use. So we're making a little keepsake book that guests can sign and we can then place on what will hopefully be a new coffee table. :-) We're still in the design process, but if it works out and looks good I'll share all the details and make a recommendation!

Four Months, Baby!

Four months! I can't believe the big day is finally getting close! Today's post will be super quick, but I found this interesting blog post on why hiring a great photographer is so important. Okay, granted, I stole the link from our own wedding photographer, Rhee Bevere, but still, it's great. Terry and I agreed from the start that we would find our photographer first and base the rest of our budget around that one item. I'm so glad we did! Just based on our engagement pictures, we know the wedding photos will be amazing.

Enjoy!
Why you should NEVER skimp on wedding photography from Southall Eden's blog

A sample from Rhee's amazing work!

Fat Tuesday and a Busy Month Ahead

Tomorrow marks the beginning of Lent, so today is Fat Tuesday. Terry was raised Catholic, and we both really believe in the idea of Lent, so now we both observe the 40 days of giving up something important or indulgent. Tonight we're going out to ice cream (well, frozen yogurt, at our favorite add-your-own-toppings shop, Twist) to indulge before we dive into Lent. Our sacrifices for the next 40 days: chocolate (for Terry, although I am cutting back also), cheese crackers (for me, because I love Cheez-Its and the like), and soda.

Tomorrow also marks the beginning of our 10-day real food challenge. Today I cleaned out our fridge and pantry to purge all the processed food and make room for the loads of groceries (from THREE stores, plus a bakery to buy real whole grain bread) that we bought today. I planned out all ten days to make sure we have plenty to eat, and the fun begins during breakfast tomorrow (on the menu: whole wheat toast and fruit). We love participating in these kinds of endeavors together to challenge ourselves, improve our health, and grow closer to each other. Terry has been very patient as I've explored the 100 days of real food blog and thrown out endless facts about the food industry, but he is on board for some healthy eating! Wish us luck!

Meanwhile, between the food challenge, work, and Terry studying for his final, real life must continue. We are planning to move to a new apartment at the end of the month, and we've (hopefully) found a place we really like - more to come if we actually decide to live there. So the packing process will begin soon, and my parents will venture down to LA to help us move (they owe Terry's parents big time for all the times they helped us!). We are so excited to find a lovely new apartment that will be our first married home! On a down note, I will be let go from my teaching job at the end of this school year (again) - the budget cuts are hitting us along with everyone else. While that puts a damper on things, we are grateful to have plenty of warning and the opportunity for me to apply for other jobs. While dealing with that, we're also shopping for a new (used) car, which we'll purchase after we make a decision on an apartment.

And finally, oh yes, that whole wedding thing. Last night I added stamps to all the reply envelopes and continued work on one of our DIY projects - the place card holders. Despite the minor battles with the glue gun and X-ACTO knife, we're well on our way to finishing one of our first big projects! Terry has promised me a wedding work day (well, a few hours) this Sunday after his finals to get our invitations underway and to finish up the designs on the response card and information card. It'll be nice to finally have something wedding-related to report on the blog! I'm trying to take pictures along the way so I can come back and document it all later, and I look forward to posting those in a few months.

So, tomorrow is March 9th - the first day of Lent and four months to the wedding! I'm looking forward to reporting our progress on the things we are giving up for Lent, the 10 day challenge, our new apartment, and the invitations!

Nutrition, Health, and all that Fun Stuff

While nutrition and diet aren't directly related to the wedding, the topics seem to appear in every issue of every bridal magazine I've received in the last 18+ months. And who doesn't want to look as fit, toned, and healthy as possible on their wedding day? Still, the little articles on "health" seem mediocre at best (titles such as "Get Slim and Sexy! The Two-Week Countdown" aren't exactly promising), and I always love to find genuinely educational articles about nutrition, healthy lifestyles, and exercise.

Today, I want to share an amazing blog that I recently discovered through one of my many food magazines. This family challenged themselves (successfully!) to 100 days of "real food" - meaning absolutely no processed food. The website includes how they did it, recipes with real food, and even how to buy real food on a budget. So if you have a minute to explore the idea behind real food, enjoy! http://www.100daysofrealfood.com/

If you click on the "10 Day Challenge" tab, you can read about the challenge that Terry and I are going to attempt. It is what it sounds like: We challenge ourselves to 10 days of real food, nothing processed. Essentially, we can eat vegetables, fruits, meat, pasta, dairy products, even sweets, but none of it can be processed food. You can check out the rules here. Wish us luck!

Speaking of health and nutrition, a lot of people have asked me if Terry and I are changing our diets or exercise routines for the wedding. While we've always aimed to be healthy, we are definitely more conscious of our health as we approach the wedding. We look at it as establishing routines for the rest of our lives, so we have focused on a big push to get and stay healthy. Here are some of the ways we stay healthy:

• exercise between four and six days per week (running, yoga, strength training, hiking, Pilates, or other cardio videos on OnDemand)
• eat small meals throughout the day (I do this more than Terry; I eat 50-300 calories about six times per day) and try to write down what I eat
  
• try to eat lots of fruits and vegetables, yogurt, milk, lean meats, and whole grains
• make food from scratch as much as possible (avoid frozen dinners, fast food, etc.)
• eat out only once per week
  
• eat dessert only once per week (this one's tough, and we cheat all the time)

Of course, we can only do our best. When things get busy, we eat out or skip a workout, but we really love the way we feel when we're exercising and eating healthy food. Terry is training for a 200-mile, 12-person relay race (www.ragnarrelay.com), so he runs 4-6 miles every few days, but we'll need a new motivational tool after he's done, and your ideas are welcome! We hope that by mixing up our workouts and continuing to try new recipes, we can stay motivated throughout our married life together. And here's hoping we'll feel healthy and confident on the big day!

Ceremony Details

This weekend, Terry and I drove through some fairly crazy weather to my parents' house for some minor wedding errands. On Saturday morning, we met with our amazing pastor, Frank. He is truly an incredible man and wonderful mentor to us as we prepare for our nuptials in just a few months. Pastor Frank gives us his undivided attention every time we meet with him, and we love talking with him about our concerns, his wishes and advice for us, our thoughts on marriage, and his ideas for the ceremony. We feel so lucky that serendipity led us to meet Frank, and we are so looking forward to his officiating our wedding. He has some incredible, unique ideas to make the ceremony personal while still traditional, religious while still respectful and inviting of other beliefs. We love that Frank has taken the time to get to know us so well as a couple, and he even made the effort to meet our parents to extend his understanding of who we are. Terry and I both love this part of wedding planning; the ceremony really matters the most. The rest is a big party and a great celebration, but the ceremony is where we take our vows and share our decision to marry with our closest friends and family. Frank is helping us make sure that the ceremony is about us and our parents, and I even teared up a little just imagining the big day. I keep reminding myself that after all this fun, lengthy, somewhat silly, somewhat tense wedding planning, we will ultimately get to the point where we finally be husband and wife. And that'll make it all worth it!

Saturday, we also spent some quality time with Terry's parents scoping out potential venues for the rehearsal dinner. Originally, we had intended for the rehearsal dinner to be at my parents' house, but Terry's parents pointed out that a dinner closer to the wedding venue would be much more practical and far less stressful for all involved. We are excited that they're willing to plan the dinner for us, and we know the night will be amazing! We're definitely keeping our dinner small; the rehearsal is traditionally just the bridal party and any involved in the wedding, along with the bride's and groom's parents. It'll be so nice to be able to spend time with each of these people that night before the chaos of the wedding day, and we're excited about the funny stories we'll all share! So to make some decisions on the rehearsal dinner location, we started with a list from the Palm Event Center, ate at two of the places, and then scouted out the others. We crossed off a few, and Terry's parents will be able to make a very informed decision. Thankfully, most of the options look great, and we should be able to enjoy an intimate, relaxed rehearsal dinner before the big day.

Tomorrow, I get the day off for President's Day (thank you, George and Abe!), so I'm dedicating a good chunk of my day to my DIY projects for the wedding, including invitations and place card holders. We're having a grand old time with the wedding planning, but part of me is ready to just be married already! :-) All in good time!

Under the Five-Month Mark

Since our engagement all those months ago, I imagined that this time - five months out - would be the beginning of wedding madness. Still, with fewer than 150 days to go, we still find the process fun and low stress. There's still a lot to do, yes, but the big stuff is done and we can just enjoy the rest.

Lately we've really focused on decisions for all the small stuff: ceremony and reception music, paper products for the wedding, attire, and the overall look that we want. I still love browsing through magazines and wedding blogs, and I love seeing how creatively other couples execute their ideas. Unfortunately, the most popular (and, therefore, most featured) weddings these days are in the vintage, eclectic, semi-casual style. Check out Style Me Pretty if you don't get what I mean. Popular items include buttons, teacups, mason jars, single sunflowers, birdcage veils, linen bridesmaids dresses, and it's all so dreamy and pretty. Sadly, our wedding doesn't work with any of those things, and formal, traditional weddings are rarely featured in current magazines and blogs. So I'm taking as much inspiration as I can from other sources and making up the rest as I go!

One aspect I've been exited about from the beginning is the invitations - truly a labor of love. We're just starting to print, assemble, and construct the invitations and envelopes, but it's fun seeing it all come together. Our goal for mailing is April 1st, and while two months seems like plenty, it's going fast. Just tracing and cutting the envelope liners took me three nights, so we have our work cut out for us (please pardon the pun)!

We're looking forward to some wine tasting together over Valentine's weekend, and on President's Day weekend we'll be headed up north again. Terry's parents will be looking over rehearsal dinner options, and Terry and I will get to taste more cake flavors from the amazing Bev Tenaka. A few fun errands ahead in the world of wedding planning! Hope you have an amazing Valentine's Day!

Honeymoon Hotels!

We reserved all of our hotels for our honeymoon! We researched a few hundred hotels, read eight thousand reviews, and finally booked. We have a travel agent who has always booked our cruises, and we have been able to use her advice to find the best locations for our stays in London and Italy.

In case you missed our other posts, here's the honeymoon agenda: Our wedding is on a Saturday, and we spend that night in Pleasanton at the gorgeous Rose Hotel. The following day is a brunch at my parents' house with the bridal party, and we'll hopefully be able to catch up on some sleep. We leave the next day, Monday, and land in London on Tuesday. For our week in London, we will stay at the Rubens Hotel, the closest hotel to Buckingham Palace. We'll spend the week exploring London's biggest attractions, including but not limited to the castles, cathedrals, shopping centers, restaurants, parks, pubs, and theatres. We'll also venture out to Stratford-Upon-Avon, Shakespeare's birthplace, and Terry's letting me enjoy a full day of English major geekiness basking in the history of Queen Elizabeth and Shakespeare.


After London, we head to the Amalfi Coast. Our hotel for three nights is in Vietri sul Mare. Hotel Raito is nestled right on the coast overlooking the gorgeous coastal waters in Italy. We mentioned previously that we found a great deal for this hotel through Luxury Link, and we are so excited for the few days to truly relax on our big trip. We get massages as part of our package, but the rest of the stay here will include hikes, breakfast on the balcony, and checking out the small towns along the coast.


Finally, the last leg of our trip is four nights in Rome. We will stay at the popular Hotel Artemide, only a short walk to the Spanish Steps and the heart of Rome. Our focus in Rome is historical sight seeing and tons of food. We have several friends providing must-see tips, so we can't wait to pack it all into our last few days.

So that's the plan! We can't wait for the wedding, but the honeymoon will truly kick off what's sure to be an awesome lifetime of traveling together. I'm a pretty lucky girl to get such a great travel buddy!

Boun Appetito!

Terry here! It has been a long time since I've posted. Sorry to everyone about that; I know how much people have missed my blogging, and I apologize that you've had to suffer through Julie's continuous posts (love you, Jules!).

Anyway, between work, school (I'll be done in June!), running (taking part in a Ragnar relay - www.ragnarrelay.com), I haven't made time to get to the ol' blog. But now I get to talk about the really important part of the wedding: the food!

On January 19th, Jules and I had a whirlwind day that ended with us flying from LA to San Jose, and driving out to Pleasanton for our tasting. We would have much preferred to have gone up another day, but we would have sacrificed getting to try the whole menu. We arrived at the Palm Event Center a few minutes early and were greeted with glass of champagne. The tasting itself took place in the Estate Room, which is the room in which our ceremony will be. We were seated with three other couples, all of whom are getting married the holiday weekend before us. It was really nice getting to chat with these couples and we ended up walking away from the night with several new ideas and things to consider for our big day.

The tasting started with a sampling of the passed hors d'oeuvres. Laid before was a platter with an eggplant caponata on crostini, a crab salad with preserved lemon, a smoked sausage stuffed mushroom, a mini Reuben sandwich with sauerkraut and Thousand Island dressing, and a chorizo and date wrapped in bacon. The eggplant crostini was very light, prepared in a vinaigrette without a heavy flavor of eggplant. Julie and I were big fans of this appetizer and thought that this would be quite nice on a hot summer day. The crab salad was prepared in a little wafer, so it's still a finger food treat. This, too, was light, but lemony and refreshing as well. I love seafood, so I was already gung-ho on this one, and thankfully Julie didn't need any convincing. We had one more appetizer to choose! The sausage stuffed mushroom did not make the list. It wasn't just the right flavor for our liking (I thought there was a little too much cumin). So it came down to the Reuben and bacon wrapped chorizo and date. The mini sandwich was very tasty, and I was actually surprised Julie liked it as she's not a fan of sauerkraut. But the chorizo and date in bacon? Wow! I was sold on it. It's spicy and sweet, with the right amount of bacon (and how can you go wrong with bacon?). Julie and I talked it over, and though the Reuben was good, it's a Reuben. Compared to the chorizo and date, it just didn't hold a candle. So our passed hors d'oeuvres will be the eggplant crostini, crab salad, and the bacon wrapped chorizo and date.

In addition to the passed appetizers, we will also have an appetizer table. We weren't served any of the food for this as it all comes with our booking of the venue. So our guests will all get to enjoy cheeses, salamis, peppers, artichoke dip, and Spanish meatballs! Yum yum!

Onto the sit down portion of the meal. We began with three salads: a caesar, a classic wedge, and mixed green and pear salad. All were great, but the one that stood out was the pear salad. In addition to the greens and pears, the salad was topped with candied walnuts, crumbled blue cheese, and a balsamic vinaigrette. It was delightful!

The entrees were definitely a feat to finish as there were 9 and we'd already had plenty for starters. First came the fish and vegetarian choices: a basil and brown sugar salmon, a seasonal white fish with chili ponzu and scallions, and a red chard and sweet onion ravioli with carrot-nutmeg beurre blanc. The white fish was light and flaky, and the chili ponzu had a nice kick to it. The salmon was oh so buttery with a light crust of brown sugar. But the surprise of the night was the ravioli! The sauce was sweet and complemented the red chard and sweet onion perfectly. I think it may have been the only dish that Julie ate the entire thing of (I polished off her other dishes). The dish was also the talk of the table well past the other entrees.

The second course consisted of chicken and pork. We had a chicken saltimbocca with onion soubise, pan-seared chicken with wild mushroom and sweet wine butter sauce, and Carloina-style BBQ pork loin with crispy onions. Again, everything was delicious. We particularly liked the chicken with wild mushroom and sweet wine butter sauce. To give you a better picture, the chef referred to it as the butterscotch chicken. It was definitely sweet, but the taste was so unique! At the end of the course, that was the front runner.

The third, and final course had the red meat: a grilled New York with brandy and green peppercorn sauce with buttermilk shallots; braised beef short ribs with upland cress and fig demi; and marinated tri-tip with red wine demi, sauteed mushrooms, and crumbled blue cheese. Everything was good, but we felt the New York was a little over done. The short ribs were super tender, and the tri-tip was prepared to perfection. At the end of the meal we were torn between those two dishes.

Well, in the end, we had to choose two of the nine entrees. We absolutely loved the ravioli, so that was in. Now we had to choose between the butterscotch chicken, short ribs, and tri-tip. After talking it over on the way home, we agreed that the ravioli and the chicken would be too much sweetness for the night (and we hadn't even gotten to the cake). Between the short ribs and tri-tip, it came down to the fact that the tri-tip had that little something extra to push it ahead of the competition. So we will be enjoying the ravioli and tri-tip.

A few things. If you're concerned about what you're going to choose to eat because everything sounds good, don't worry! Julie and I have decided that we're going to serve a family style dinner, so the food will be brought out on platters to the table for all to share and enjoy! Second, if your mouth is already watering over the menu, just remember that the menu may change ever so slightly as things go in and out of season, but that really only applies to the small details of the dishes.

So that was our tasting. Phew, I'm out of shape when it comes to typing. I'm winded from writing this, and now I really need to eat something.

Until next time!